The present invention relates to devices used in conjunction with machine tools having spindles which are vertically movable relative to a support table, such as upright drill presses, for example.
The most common way of holding a part for having a cutting or shaping operation performed thereon by a machine tool of the above-noted type is to use fixtures and/or jigs to secure the part to the machine table. It can take a considerable amount of time to refixture or jig (set up) a given part for having different machine tool operations performed thereon; and consequently to keep set-up and tear down time to a minimum, it has been the practice to set up several machines for respectively performing different operations on a part and to work on a considerable inventory of such parts once the machines are set up. This procedure has the disadvantage of requiring the use of several machines and of requiring the storage of the fixtures or jigs for a given part once a sufficient quantity of the part has been worked on to justify the set-up. Also, the parts must often be placed in inventory until they are needed in the manufacture of a device which embodies the part. The storage and retrieval of fixtures and jigs and parts is also a time-consuming task and the handling of these items may result in them being damaged or occasionally lost.